


Turned and Faded

by Crossroads_Castiel



Series: The Necessary Sacrifice Series [2]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Anal Sex, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Castiel Deserves to be Happy (Supernatural), Castiel and Dean Winchester Have a Profound Bond, Dean Winchester Deserves to be Happy, Dean Winchester is Protective of Castiel, Domestic Castiel/Dean Winchester, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual Sex, M/M, Matchmaking, Memory Loss, Memory Magic, Non-Consensual Kissing, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-17
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-16 07:35:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 15,524
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28827534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crossroads_Castiel/pseuds/Crossroads_Castiel
Summary: Sequal to A Necessary Sacrifice: Castiel has been human for six months when he and Dean conspire to help Sam find love of his own. However, choices they make leave Cas vulnerable to a dark witch who will stop at nothing to have his Grace and his servitude for herself. Will they ever find a way to enjoy their lives without looking over their shoulders and what are they willing to give up to get it?
Relationships: Castiel/Dean Winchester, Sam Winchester/Original Female Character(s)
Series: The Necessary Sacrifice Series [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2113434
Comments: 2
Kudos: 7





	1. Little good ever came from meddling

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I have had this story mostly written even before I had the original finished. This story will update every Sunday.

Sam walked softly down the hall, not trying to tiptoe but walking softly in his joggers. He stopped at Dean's closed door, slowly turned the knob, and slid his hand in to locate the light switch. He kept his eyes averted as he flipped it on, flooding the room with bright, fluorescent light that Dean rarely used due to its harshness. 

“Mother fucking sonofabitch!” Dean growled out as he abruptly sat up in bed, swiping at the lamp and confused as to why it wasn’t making the light go off. He was an angry sleeper, as Cas had said. Speaking of whom…

Castiel sat up and blinked at the door, his eyes tiny blue slits as he squinted, his hair a disheveled mess. “Sam? Is it time?” His voice was harsh from sleep and though their chests were bare, the sheet and comforter were tucked around their hips. 

Sam had walked into far more skin showing and far worse scenarios...hence why he'd refused to look. Cas was typically fairly courteous at pulling the sheet up when he knocked...Dean, not so much. However, even as much as he trusted Cas to try to save him embarrassment, he did not look through the crack in the door. “Yeah, meet me at the front door in five.”

Cas looked over at Dean, who’d taken a pillow and had it pressed over his head dramatically in an attempt to block out the harsh light. “Better make it ten…” 

“Gotcha,” Sam agreed then he clicked the door shut and walked away. 

“I don’t want to,” Dean groaned, his voice muffled under the white pillow, his chest bare to the harsh light and the sheet barely covering his hip bones now. Cas smiled at the voice under the pillow and laid a kiss on his shoulder. 

“I know, but you promised me,” Cas murmured sweetly in his ear, his voice a soft whisper as he smiled. Dean groaned again and pulled the pillow away from his face to see him. 

“I made that promise under duress. You tricked me,” He said with a face that was trying to remain grumpy but his lips turned up at the corners at Cas smiling down at him. 

“I merely suggested we needed to exercise more since I’m human now and can’t heal you…” Cas said again as he kissed his chest, right where his heart lied. 

Dean groaned and stretched, carding a hand through Cas’ mussed up hair. “And you said those things when you knew I would agree to anything you said. You’re an evil son of a bitch.”

Castiel grinned then laid a kiss on Dean’s hip bone, making him shudder. “I’ve been called worse for far less…now, let’s get dressed and get going.”

Dean groaned dramatically again as Cas left the bed in a sudden burst of energy that he didn’t feel. He did however wake up more as he watched him walk across the room naked to retrieve his clothes. He was tired, not dead after all. He watched Cas grab running shorts and a t-shirt from some of the newer clothes they’d had to go buy recently. Turns out when one is used to not getting dirty or hot or cold they aren’t used to needing so much clothing. The first hot day had seen Cas hang up the trench coat for the summer and trade in his thick dress pants in for jeans, something Dean was not complaining about at all. However, running shorts were not part of either of their repertoire…until now. However, when Cas pulled on underwear and then the running shorts...they showed off his thighs and Dean licked his lips, trying to stay focused on his complaining.

“I’m going to murder Sam for putting the thought of jogging into your head. I don’t jog unless something is chasing me,” Dean growled out as he sat up and stretched his arms above his head, his eyes locked on Cas' back. 

“I am aware of that, and we need to practice so you can continue to outrun them. Neither of us are as fit as we used to be…” Castiel said with a raised eyebrow as he slid the white t-shirt over his bare chest and turned back to Dean.

Propping his face up on his palm and fighting not to smile again, Dean grumbled a reply. “Stop being so reasonable. It’s too early for that.”

Castiel gave a sympathetic smile and came to stand in front of him, extending a hand to pull him up. When Dean accepted, he pulled him into his arms and laid a kiss on his Adam’s apple. “Well then, how about some incentive?”

“I could be persuaded I suppose…” Dean murmured against his chin. Just as Castiel placed his hands at the small of Dean’s bare back, a fist pounded on the door. 

“Five-minute warning. Clothes. Shoes. Door. Five minutes!” Sam yelled through the door. "Cas...keep him on task."

“Just remember, whoever gets back first gets the shower first…” Cas whispered in his ear as he disentangled himself and quirked an eyebrow, his eyes flashing with mischief. As he headed for the door, tennis shoes in hand, he was rewarded with the sight of Dean digging out his running shorts.  
\------------------------------

Dean, Sam, and Cas stood in the kitchen, all three red faced and drinking water. Sam chuckled to himself. Dean stood, leaning his hip against the counter, with his other hand clutching his side. His face was flushed all the way to his neck line and the sweat running down his back had plastered his shirt to him. Cas, meanwhile, seemed a bit more composed but he was nursing the water bottle like it might take Dean's place in his heart and his hair was plastered to his head in a sweaty mess of its own. 

“Not as easy as it looks is it?” Sam said with a grin after he swallowed his last glug of water, grinning at the two of them.

“Why…” Dean wheezed out, “would anyone choose to do that…..for fun?” He looked incredulously at Sam as he grinned at him. 

Castiel huffed a bit but shrugged in response. “It’s not that bad, Dean…”

“Says the man who used to fly. Which is also horrible by the way…” Dean said with an eyeroll to Cas. 

“Flying is quite pleasant if you give it a chance. Running could be the same,” Cas shrugged again, quietly contemplating as he recovered his breath. 

“Speaking of pleasant….” Dean said with a raised eyebrow, remembering he and Cas' earlier conversation. 

“Oh God…” Sam said with a groan as he made to leave the room, waving his hand dismissively. 

“No no…Sam, wait. Whatever came of you asking out that hot new librarian chick you told me about?” Dean’s eyebrows were raised in genuine interest now, so Sam sighed and leaned against the door face, his arms crossed over his chest. 

“Cas…you’re just gonna let him talk like that right in front of you?” Sam waved his hand at his brother in frustration, hoping Cas would help to change the subject. 

Castiel shrugged nonchalantly. “She is very attractive.. I can’t argue with facts, nor do I feel threatened by her as she showed no interest in Dean.”

Sam rolled his eyes when he discovered he would get no help from Cas. “Nothing came of it, okay?”

Dean shook his head as he finished his water and tossed the bottle into the sink. “Why? She seemed pretty into you when we ran into her at the grocery store last week. She even did the flirty eyes thing.”

“Let’s say I did ask her out and it got serious…What then?” Sam said with growing frustration at their meddling. “Here, let me take you back to the secret underground bunker I live in with my brother and his boyfriend who have EXTREMELY loud sex at all hours of the night? Oh, and one of them used to be an Angel. Yeah, I see her really going for that.”

“We’re not that loud…” Dean said with a stone face.

“And I wouldn’t lead with that…” Castiel said with a slightly amused expression.

Sam rolled his eyes as he stared at his brother and his best friend with exasperation. “That’s all you took away from that? Look, Mom has Bobby, even if she isn’t calling it what it is. You two have each other. It works because you’re in the life. She’s a civilian. I don’t want a one-night stand, you know? I’m too old for that.”

Dean nodded as he gestured to Cas. “I get that a hundred percent. I do.”

“Then drop it, okay?” Sam said as he walked off abruptly, leaving Dean and Cas alone in the kitchen.

“So…what do we do about that?” Dean said quietly as he stared at the empty doorway. 

Cas sighed beside him and leaned against the kitchen counter. “You heard him. He doesn’t think a regular human could deal with this life, and he’s not wrong, Dean…”

“Hunters aren’t exclusively male you know,” Dean said thoughtfully with a raised eyebrow. 

Castiel nodded as he put his bottle in the sink and stretched his arms above his head. “That is true, but they are not as numerous as male hunters, and Sam isn’t interested in men from my understanding of him.”

“I’m not interested in men either,” Dean said with a laugh as Cas turned with a skeptical face. “Just you, dumb ass. I was trying to be romantic…”

“You missed the mark, I believe is the phrase,” Cas said as he crossed his arms over his chest. 

Dean winked and continued. “Anyway, mom and Jack are out hunting…and mom made some friends back when she helped the Dicks of Letters. If anyone knows any…it’d be her…” Dean said as he pulled his phone out from his shorts pocket. 

“You really think your mother will help you play matchmaker for your brother?” Cas said skeptically.

Dean laughed as he sent a rapid text without looking up at him. “Dude, that’s what moms do.”

Cas shrugged nonchalantly as he grabbed the neck of his sweat-soaked shirt and worked it over his head. “I wouldn’t know about that, considering I was not raised by a mother or father. You text your mom. I’m going to go shower….” He walked out of the kitchen doorway, his shirt bunched in his hand and Dean's eyes rose to follow him. 

Dean rapidly remembered their earlier conversation about his incentive to run and quickly finished his message to his mom and ran after him down the hall. “Hey, wait for me!”  
\--------------------------

Dean sat down at the library table and powered up his laptop about two weeks later. Cas sat in his usual spot, tucked away in a corner but ever in Dean’s line of sight. He had a cup of coffee in his hand and another dusty tome open on his lap. Dean had never seen the appeal, but Cas revered those books in a way he never would. As he tapped away at his computer he peaked over the top, enjoying watching Cas so relaxed and at ease, and as he always seemed to, Cas looked up just as Dean’s eyes were on him. He smiled and took a sip of his coffee and Dean winked at him, blowing a silly air kiss that made Cas roll his eyes in mock annoyance. It was sickeningly domestic, and Dean knew it…and he not so secretly loved it. He soaked up every bit of domesticity they could get in their non-traditional lives. He looked back to his computer reluctantly as his email opened, and his eyebrows raised in interest. 

“Well there’s a thought…” Dean murmured as he clicked open the email and read it. 

“What is it?” Cas said as he put down his coffee and came to stand behind him, intrigued by his interest. Dean could feel the heat of him at his back and the rich coffee aroma that clung to his clothes. He leaned back enough to make contact with his chest. Cas noticed and laid a hand on both shoulders as he peered at the email. They’d both been denied touches for so long that they didn’t miss any opportunities now. Not even ones as simple as these.

“A hunter’s funeral. Older hunter named Greg Keely,” Dean said in answer as he scanned the email, his forehead creased in concentration. 

“What killed him?” Cas asked as he leaned down and his cheek brushed Dean’s as he read the email as well.

Dean caught himself almost leaning his cheek against Cas like a cat before catching himself and sighing. Time for that later. Have to focus. “Heart attack actually. Running from a pack of Weres. Keeled over dead…” Dean murmured, feeling Cas’ eyes on him and hearing the I-told-you-so before it arrived. 

Cas made a soft, noncommittal sound in his throat before kneading Dean’s shoulder with one hand. “Hmm. Tell me again how I’m too pushy making you exercise more…” 

Dean huffed and gently nudged Cas' head with his own. “Okay, I get your point. He was only 54, but a lot of hunters don’t have a place to settle down like we do. It’s a lifestyle consisting mainly of cheeseburgers and hotel rooms. Most of us don’t live long enough for our bodies to fail from that lifestyle…” Dean tried to console Cas’ nervous energy and having had this conversation often in the past few months.

Cas pressed gently into Dean’s shoulder again. “Well Greg did…so what’s so interesting about it other than the obvious?”

Dean jumped on the topic change like a drowning man thrown life preserver. “Well…the funeral is only about three hours from us. We’ve always avoided big gatherings because they tend to get rowdy and dad didn’t much care for them but…” Dean let his train of thought fade out as he looked to Cas.

“There will be lots of hunters there…” Castiel finished his thought, following his logic but sounding unhappy about it. 

Dean leaned back in his chair, hearing his unhappiness but not understanding it. “Always are, and since it seems the hunters have gotten over the grudge they held against us way back when, it might be a good opportunity…” 

“Or a good way to get shot again and not have an Angel to help you…” Cas said quietly as he pulled his hands away from his shoulders abruptly and crossed his arms over his chest as he frowned. 

Dean turned in his seat and looked up at Cas as he laced his fingers with one of Cas' hands. “Don’t be like that. We’ve worked with hunters since then and everything’s been fine…Mom is the one who forwarded it to me...”

“Your mother went around killing hunters when the Brits brainwashed her…She shouldn’t be going to that large of a gathering either.” Cas looked grim, his mouth a tight line and his teeth clenched enough that his jaw flexed. 

Dean shook his head as he went to stand. “The only thing those dicks did right is cover their tracks. No one suspects it was mom, and she goes to these things as a way to pay her respects to the ones she hurt when she wasn’t in control of herself. She's never had any problems.”

“And she’s going to drag Jack into that ruckus….” Cas growled out as he paced. Dean watched him, admiring how his hair had grown to fall into his eyes just a bit and his arms now strained against the shirt sleeves, proof of the new exercise regimen he’d been implementing and forcing on him...but he couldn’t argue with the results just now. 

“She’d never put him in unnecessary danger…Also…ruckus?” Dean felt the niggling need to defend his mother’s actions even if he wasn’t sure he one hundred percent believed it. He smirked at cas' choice of words, hoping it would relax Cas a bit. 

It didn’t. Cas’ face remained closed down and disapproving but he seemed to settle his face into acceptance as he spoke. “Taking a Nephilim into a den of hunters is absolutely unnecessarily dangerous but I doubt Jack or Mary would listen to reason…so I agree we go. If nothing else than to be back up.”

Dean rolled his eyes and nudged Cas with his elbow, trying to lighten the burden Cas seemed to be carrying about going. “And our main motive. Matchmaker, remember?”

Cas shook his head, looking grim again. “Sam will absolutely hate that idea…”

“What will I hate?” Sam asked as he entered the library. He tossed the car key to Dean. “And the fridge is stocked for the week. Your turn next time,” Sam added as he leaned against one of the pillars. 

Dean caught the car key and glanced back at the email abruptly. “Oh, um, Mom invited us to a hunter’s funeral. Greg Keely. Heart attack running from a pack of weres…and you can cut out that self-satisfied look I can feel you trying to slip to Cas. He’s already done his I told you so’s.”

“Well, as long as someone said it,” Sam said with a soft laugh as he smiled at Cas, who still did not seem amused. “But what about that will I hate, other than someone dying of course?”

“I uh…” Dean stuttered out, scratching the back of his neck, unsure of how to answer. 

Cas picked up where Dean couldn’t, though with little enthusiasm. “He suggested we share one room with two beds since Mom and Jack are already in the area.”

“Yeah…. no. I definitely agree with Cas on this one. Two rooms. You two can’t be trusted and I’m not going to wake up to anything I can’t unsee...not after what happened in Arkansas.” Sam visibly shuddered but Dean grinned before covering his mouth with his hand before getting control of his face.

“Okay. Then it’s settled,” Dean said with a smile at Cas, but he stopped when he saw the thunder clouds in his eyes. Winning an argument was sometimes just not worth it. “I’ll book two rooms.”


	2. Worth It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cas makes his unhappiness and Dean's idea known before they head to the hunter's funeral. Dean and Cas make time to spend some quiet time together before they head out into the chaos of a hunter's bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> short chapter this week but next week's will be longer. 
> 
> This chapter contains a M/M sex scene and is not intended for readers under 18.

Dean couldn’t find Cas, which wasn’t like him. Since they had become…whatever the hell they were now…neither seemed to want to let the other out of their sight for long. Perhaps years of losing one another had led to a need to be in one another’s radius…but Dean had patiently packed his own duffle and laid Cas’ out beside his own on the bed…but no Cas appeared. He went searching through the winding corridors of the bunker until he heard a familiar sound and knew where to find him. 

The sound of knives pinging into targets led Dean to the long, skinny storage room they’d converted into a knife range for Cas when they’d discovered he had an affinity for it. Cas had always turned his nose up at guns and much preferred his Angel blade, but without a trench coat to conceal it, it was a bit conspicuous. Dean had been reminded of how well Cas threw the blade and had suggested trying to melt one down into throwing daggers. The idea had intrigued Cas and well…he was damn good with them. 

Dean walked into the room and leaned against the door frame, watching Cas chuck blade after blade down into the target, all hitting with deadly accuracy. He shook his head as he watched him. He might be human now, but he moved with such grace and skill that he’d swear he wasn’t human if he didn’t know different, oh but he knew. He pressed his palm over the vial of grace that hung from his neck as a habit. It was now just like checking that he had his wallet and keys, something he panicked if he didn’t know where it was in the rare moments he took it off. Cas sensed the movement and he looked over, sheathing the unthrown knives in his wrist sheaths as he walked over to the target to retrieve the others. 

“You know I think this is a bad idea. I would like that on record,” Cas murmured as he slipped the rest of his knives into the open spots on his sheaths. 

“I’ll note it on the official document,” Dean said with a smile that normally made Cas mirror a smile back… but not today. Dean sighed and took a small step forward. “Cas, you can’t wrap us in bubble wrap…”

Cas sighed and pushed his fingers into his temples, a very human gesture Cas had picked up on that Dean loved. “You do not need to make ridiculous exaggerations to me. Not wanting to take two hunters who were once hated by the hunting community, one hunter who killed some of the hunting community, a Nephilim, and an ex-Angel into a building packed with lots of inebriated hunters is far and away from being overprotective. I was okay with your plan about helping Sam find a nice hunter, but I didn’t think it would entail such high risk to my family.”

“Everything will be fine, Cas. Come on, we gotta get packed. I promise…I hear you,” Dean walked over and laid his palms on Cas face. “I hear you, but we gotta do this for Sam. I want him to get to have something as wonderful as I do…It’s not fair for him to be alone….and if all else fails…. I could probably be persuaded to let him get a dog…Maybe.”

“Promises, promises…” Cas murmured before he gave Dean a soft kiss on the cheek before he let him lead him to the bedroom to pack.  
\--------------------------------  
“Cas! Sam! Dean!” Jack said excitedly as they opened the doors to the Impala. Jack was there before the engine shut off, offering to help unload their bags. “Your rooms are on a different floor. Apparently, the whole place is crawling with hunters. That’s what Mary said anyway,” Jack said as Cas smiled at him and they embraced. 

“You’re enjoying hunting with Mary?” Cas asked as he studied Jack’s face, a hand on his shoulder. 

“Oh yeah. We cleared out a vamp nest last night!” Jack said with the excitement of a child on Christmas morning. 

Mary walked up then and eyed Castiel sheepishly. “I was going to tell you guys about it in a bit. We had plenty of help, with all the hunters in town.” Her voice was guarded, having had this argument with Castiel several times before. Cas sighed and nodded, choosing not to argue as Dean squeezed his hand before letting go to grab his bag. 

‘So, what’s the plan?” Dean asked as he slung his duffle over his shoulder and looked to his mom. 

“Well, the funeral itself is tomorrow. There’s a lot of hunters at Nelson’s. It’s a bar down the highway that’s run by a couple of retired hunters. You ever been?” The three of them shook their heads in unison. 

Mary shook her head as she studied the three of them. “How can you three have avoided other hunters so much over the years? You’ve been doing this for decades.”

“Sorry mom, but it was Dad’s thing. He never approved of socializing with other hunters…” Dean studied the ground as he spoke, and Cas laid a hand on the small of his back, offering unspoken comfort to Dean. 

“We had a few hunter friends, but we rarely went to funerals and gatherings.” Sam added as well. 

“Two hunters shot and killed Dean and Sam at one point. I had to assist in bringing them back…so they’re used to an abundance of caution with the hunting community…As should you be with your history….” Castiel said with a raised eyebrow, speaking without words. 

Mary’s forehead scrunched and her eyes narrowed unhappily. “Another story I haven’t been told, but now’s not the time, I guess. I’ve been gauging the feel of the community. No one knows or suspects my involvement in…those things. Everything is fine. Come on. Let’s get you guys checked in and then we can go to Nelson’s.”  
\------------------------------------  
Dean closed the door and locked the handle and chain immediately behind he and Cas as they entered. He’d learned from years on the road never to grow complacent. He leaned against the door and smiled at Cas who was looking at the room with less than an excited expression, his duffle still strapped over his shoulder.

“Hunters pack out the hotels at these things. Sorry the accommodations are not up to your high standards,” Dean said it with a wrinkle of his nose and a smirk.

Cas raised an eyebrow and side eyed the room. “I never understood having a fear of germs…. until now. And do not EVEN look at me that way. There is no way I will do anything that requires being naked in this room that is not showering. I can get diseases now…I feel like I might in this room…”

Dean walked over and put his hands on Cas’ hips as he dropped his duffel on the floor, and was promptly swatted away. “Oh, come on, where’s your sense of adventure?”

“Not in this room, that’s for damn sure…” Castiel said with a shake of his head as Dean pretended to pout but he couldn’t hold the facial expression for long, so he kissed Cas’ cheek instead. 

“That was a really long ride….and have I told you that I love you lately?” Dean murmured in his ear as he kissed along his jaw. 

“Dean…” Cas growled out in warning as Dean stepped them closer to the bed. 

“That I worship the ground you walk on…even this ground?” Dean murmured again as he moved his mouth to Cas’ neck. Cas' legs bumped against the bed and he abruptly stopped. 

“That’s blasphemy and the answer is still no,” Castiel said sternly but his voice was breathy and had dropped in tone. Dean dropped to his knees as Cas sat reluctantly on the bed for lack of anywhere else to move to, shucking the duffel off on the mattress. Dean ran his hands along Cas’ denim clad thighs and kissed his stomach through the thin material of his t-shirt. “Oh, Goddamn you, Dean Winchester,” Castiel growled out as Dean ran a hand over his groin and he bucked into his hand. 

“Blasphemy, tsk tsk…” Dean said with a smile as he went to stand up, but Cas grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the bed on top of him.

“When I get lice, you will hear no end of it…” Castiel said with aggression as he pressed his mouth to Dean’s. 

“Worth it,” Dean said with a happy growl as he pulled away and slipped his shirt over his head. Cas caught it before it could hit the floor and left it at the end of the bed as he began wrestling with his belt.

“Better make it worth it…” Cas quirked an eyebrow as he slid his pants down and off. 

“Oh, I’m always worth it Angel,” Dean chuckled as they stripped everything off and rutted against one another. 

“I wish I could argue…” Cas hissed out as Dean drug his tongue down his stomach and drug his thumbs along Cas’ mouthwatering hipbones. “But we don’t have a lot of time before we have to go…” 

“Okay, then…I’ll stop the sweet talk…Cut right to the fucking,” Dean said with a deep chuckle as he stuck his hand in the side pocket of Cas’ duffel, knowing him too well. Cas groaned at Dean’s words and worked himself harder as he watched Dean put a dollop of lube on his finger and slick himself open for him. Cas gripped him by his hips and pulled him onto his lap, Dean’s strong legs straddling his muscular hips. Dean couldn’t help but run his hands along his upper arms, dragging his nails along as he did. He leaned back and worked Cas inside him, both shuddering in bliss as they united.   
It never got old…That was Dean’s first thought. An amazing thought, considering his past deeds. God, but he was whipped. He’d never felt this way. Not with anyone. He and Cas were forged from the same flesh when they laid together in this way. As Cas jerked his hips and pushed himself in harder, faster, Dean let himself go. He arched his back and clung to Cas’ arms, whimpering through his gritted teeth. Dean Winchester, legendary hunter and known ladies man, getting positively railed in a disgusting hotel room by a man who used to be an Angel. Yeah, didn’t call that one for his future. He looked down at Cas, his hair clinging to his sweat damp forehead, and Cas opened his eyes at the same time, biting his lower lip in concentration. Dean’s breath came out shakily as he rolled his hips just the way he knew Cas liked and was rewarded with him throwing his head back and swearing a streak in Enochian. Dean had learned exactly what those words meant, and they were absolutely filthy….He let a self-satisfied laugh escape him even as he felt Cas’ rhythm falter and both of their phones ding at the same time. Sam and the others had grown impatient. 

“Come on Cas. Everyone’s waiting,” Dean teased as he rolled his hips again. 

“Your…fault…” Cas panted out. “Fuck,” he growled out with feeling as he clumsily grabbed for Dean’s dick and pumped him with his hand. 

Dean groaned out wordlessly as Cas jacked him off, folding over on himself. He felt Cas come before he heard him moan his name in release, almost prayerful…and it pushed Dean over as well as they locked eyes, mouths agape. They had only a moment to recover, panting, before their phones dinged again. He caught his breath and rolled off, tangling his limbs with Cas’ and their fingers intermingled together in a quiet moment. 

“Worth it?” Dean said with a soft smile he saved only for Cas as he left a kiss on his shoulder. 

“Worth it…” Cas said as he shuddered under Dean’s hand. “You’re always worth it.”


	3. Jealousy and the best laid plans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean, Cas, Sam, Mary, and Jack arrive at Nelson's bar but are surprised to find they are more popular than anyone wants to be. Sam makes a new acquaintance thanks to Cas, and Cas and Dean both battle their own feelings of resentment and jealousy.

Dean and Cas followed Mary’s car to Nelson’s. There’d been a few annoyed words exchanged about how long It had taken for Dean and Cas to “get ready” and Sam had almost eye rolled himself to death when they’d finally stumbled downstairs, shirts misbuttoned, half tucked, and hair sticking up all over the place. Sam had refused to ride with them and chosen Mary’s car instead on principle alone. Meanwhile, Cas sat beside Dean in the front seat, getting increasingly antsy as they neared the roadhouse. He fidgeted with his knife sheath, adjusting the small blades just so over and over again. He finally broke the silence as they pulled onto the gravel driveway right off the highway. His voice was soft and unsure, a sound Dean had not heard from him in some time. “So, how are we playing this…us? I know some of your hunter friends are somewhat progressive minded but….” Cas’ voice faded as Dean pulled into an empty spot and shut the car off. 

“Shit. That hadn’t even crossed my mind. We’re so isolated from everyone else and we haven’t really had to worry about public perception much…not that I care.” Dean scratched his neck, a telltale sign of his discomfort and Cas sighed. 

“Hunting buddies. It’ll make things less awkward. We’re hunting buddies.” Cas let out a soft breath and Dean could feel the sadness in that one sound. The worry. “I would do anything to alleviate as much tension as possible with the crowd in there. Even pretend I don’t love you…”

“Cas…” Dean said quietly as he picked up his hand. Cas looked him in the eye but nodded to confirm his statement. 

“You just make sure you’ve got what you need to protect yourself in a fight. I can’t bring you back from the dead,” Castiel said with agitation in his voice as he exited the vehicle abruptly. Dean gripped the steering wheel hard and banged his head back on his seat as Cas closed the door behind him. 

“Real smooth, you moron,” Dean growled out to himself as he reached under his seat and grabbed his pistol before exiting the car. He couldn’t argue with Cas’ logic as to why flaunting their relationship might be a bad idea. Some hunters were open minded and some of the most loving people in the world, minus the whole monsters things. Others he'd met just seemed to use monster hunting as an excuse to kill anything they didn’t like or agree with. There were extremes in every crowd. Going into an unknown situation, he was right. Dean knew it but damn if it didn’t sting. As he went to the trunk and began putting on his own knife sheath on his ankle and checking the rounds in his gun the rest of his family walked up to the car. 

Mary had her hands stuffed in her back pocket as she looked at the group of them. “So, a lot of the hunters know me and most everyone has at least heard of Sam and Dean. What backstories are we agreeing on for Cas and Jack?”

“Father and son is doable with how much they look and act alike but the age difference is a little questionable if anyone digs too far into it,” Sam said as he studied the two of them side by side. 

Mary nodded as she too took in the resemblance of Cas and Jack. “I’ve been telling people I’m related by the Campbells, since my age is off. Could say Cas is a relative too…”

“No,” Dean and Cas said at once, shaking their heads in unison. Pretending to be hunting buddies was one thing but neither wanted to pretend to be related. 

Dean cleared his throat as he stuck his pistol at the small of his back. “Jack can be our cousin. Cas is our hunting buddy. What license do you have on you, Cas?” Dean said as he closed the trunk. 

“Casey Falls. Which isn’t funny by the way…” Cas growled out as he checked his wallet. 

Dean smiled teasingly as Cas frowned. “What other name would you like that can be shortened to Cas? Castiel is a bit biblical, you know.”

Cas threw a, increasingly grouchy look Dean’s way. “That’s not what I was talking about and you know it.”

“Enough you two. Let’s go pay our respects, have a few beers, and try to have a little fun,” Mary barked out and they all fell silent as they fell into step behind her as she turned and headed in the roadhouse. Dean smiled, thinking it funny how Cas seemed to so often treat Mary as the senior member of the group in respect when he aged her out by...well...a fucking lot. The look on Cas' face now may not have given away the weight of millennia to anyone else, but Dean knew. If anyone in the bar they were walking into had a clue, they’d have been in for a fight, or at least a whole lot of explaining. He absently brushed the front of his shirt to ease his mind that Cas’ grace was tucked safely away under his layers and stole one last love struck look to his ex-angel before plastering on his other persona. 

When they entered, the noise was like a wall. The sheer amount of people, voices, glasses clinking, chairs moving, and the other cacophony of sounds was an assault on the senses. The neon signs cast odd patches of light on different tables as it competed with the dim bulbs above their heads. Dean initially smiled, fond memories of times past, then his head shot to look at Cas. It had been over six months since he’d given up his Grace and for the most part, he was fine with new experiences, but even this one was a bit overwhelming for Dean. He caught the other man’s eyes and though Cas’ eyes were crinkled shut a bit more than normal, he nodded an indication that he was okay, knowing Dean’s line of thinking. Dean fought the urge to reach for his hand, something he did so often without thinking, and he let it drop at his side. This sucked. Their shared moment had distracted them from the fact that the din of noise had significantly died down as they’d stood in the door. He turned and far too many eyes were on them for his liking. Dean felt Cas step closer to him and he knew he wasn’t the only one to notice. 

‘Holy shit, it’s the Winchesters!” roared an unseen voice from the crowd, then more joined in. 

“Thought they were dead…” murmured another unseen voice. They could hear all manner of voices whispering rather loudly about them. Mary, the head of the group, cleared her throat and headed to the bar with the others following closely behind her, forcing her body language to be nonchalant and conveying that to the others as she led.

“Hey Nelson,” Mary murmured at the scruffy, heavily-muscled and graying man behind the counter. 

Nelson tried to have a composed face, but he kept stealing curious glances at the men behind her. “Mary, I don’t think I realized you knew the Winchesters…”

Mary smiled easily as she tossed down money onto the smooth bar top. “I’m sure I mentioned it before. Campbells and Winchesters…we’re all related you know. Can you get us four beers and a Pepsi?” 

“Sure. Sure thing, Mary…” He said as he hurried off.

“Boy, you two left a reputation in your wake, didn’t you?” Mary murmured as she stole glances around the room as the people around them slowly began to come back to regular volume.

Dean shrugged as he leaned against the bar, Cas as close by his side as either dared. As Dean looked toward the bar, Cas had himself facing the rest of the bar, his eyes scanning the crowd nervously as he watched Dean's back. “What can I say? We leave a lasting impression.”

As Nelson came back and slid the drinks to the edge of the bar, Mary passed them to each one and they scouted out a table. They were a few empties scattered around the crowded room and Dean gestured with his hand at one toward the back corner. They scooted through the crowd that seemed to almost part for them. 

“Just call us Moses,” Dean murmured as they sat at the table. 

“That's blasphemy,” Castiel said in a droll tone as he plopped into an empty chair and leaned back as he took a sip of his beer. Dean’s eyes shot to him in remembrance of earlier in their evening and Cas found the tabletop, obviously thinking the same thing as his cheeks turned a soft pink.

Jack sipped on his drink, sulking. “When do I get to drink beer? Dean lets me at the bunker…” He said as he dropped his voice. 

“You what?” Cas said with an annoyed tone as he looked to Dean who shrugged and averted his eyes as he sipped at his own beer, avoiding Cas’ gaze now.

Sam gestured for lowered tones with his hand as eyes found their table again. “You two have to tone it down…You're the ones who chose your roles here…though I think it was unnecessary.” He looked from Dean to Cas, both of whom shrugged before casting their eyes elsewhere. 

Dean began to look around the crowd now that not so many eyes were staring back. He noted a few semi familiar faces but so many were new…younger…He began to feel old as he realized he didn’t see that many “old” faces. Maybe they were the old faces now. He took a sip of his beer and saw a similar thought in Sam’s eyes as he too scanned the bar. What didn’t disappoint, however, was that he did spy more than a few female hunters. Now if only Sam would get the idea on his own…. but before he could piece that thought together, he saw a small group of fresh-faced hunters coming toward their table. He swore he never looked that young when he was hunting…These kids were clearly no more than twenty-five. Then he thought of Claire and the others and realized they weren’t getting younger, and he’d been hunting alone at that age. He was just getting older. He sighed and tried to not act on edge as the group surrounded the table. 

“Yes?” Mary said at the group, her eyebrow raised in question even as the group all but skimmed over her. 

A young man with pin straight chestnut hair and an honest to God dimple spoke for the group. “Is what the others here are saying true? Are you two really Sam and Dean Winchester?” He had eyes only for Dean and Sam as he spoke, making the two men squirm. 

Sam ran a hand through his hair nervously as Dean gave a skeptical look and responded gruffly. “That all depends on why you’re asking…”

“Oh my God, it really is you!” whispered one of the other young hunters in the group. Suddenly they all moved as one, pulling up chairs to their already crowded table. “Can you tell us about the Apocalypse? Did you really beat the devil?” The voices merged together as one, firing off questions faster than Sam and Dean could process them. 

“Oh, well…” Sam murmured as his face became flushed, shooting a look to Dean and Cas for help. 

‘I mean, it’s not that interesting…” Dean said as he looked to the others for an escape route. Jack, Cas, and Mary were no help as they eyed the group. 

“How many times have ya’ll come back from the dead? Harper said ten times but that’s crazy…” came a comment from another fresh-faced hunter. Dean looked over and Cas suddenly guzzled the remnants of his beer and was looking harried. 

Another young hunter piped up. “I mean, ya’ll really take on Angels and Demons? We see mostly ghouls, vamps, wraiths. Kid’s stuff.”

“You are kids…” Dean said skeptically under his breath as he took a swig of his beer, trying to find a way out of this conversation.

“Come on. At least tell us what it’s like…” came another voice amongst the chorus. Sam and Dean both shuffled in their seats, since two Angelic creatures…or at least one half Angelic and one previously Angelic creature, were staring at them uncomfortably. 

“I’m getting another beer…” Cas grumbled when Dean gave him a look asking for help. “Entertain the kiddos. You two are famous after all…” He slid his chair back and he was no more than a few feet away when one of the young hunters swooped in and sat in it. Dean followed him with his eyes as he made his way to bar, until he turned his back to him. Cas didn’t want recognition or attention, but it had left a slightly bitter taste in his mouth that no one even knew he’d existed in the decade he’d helped keep those two alive. As an Angel it’d never really bothered him but as a human…he admitted to a few selfish, petty thoughts. He’d saved their asses…and they his…multiple times over the decade. He’d been there when they fought Lucifer. He’d died by Lucifer’s own hand twice…and it was as if he had never existed. He hated the resentment bubbling slightly in his gut but he was only human after all. He waved down Nelson and held up his empty bottle. Nelson nodded and brought him another, leaning across the bar to see the table he’d come from. Cas fished out his wallet, one Dean had given him recently, and took out cash for the beer. 

“How long you been running with those Winchester boys?” Nelson asked, trying to be nonchalant and failing as Cas saw him stealing glances to the table. He sighed, long suffering and already on edge. 

“Off and on for about a decade. Was kind of a side gig for a few years….” Cas said as he tried to avoid watching the table. He hated the bitter feeling it left him with. He’d thought women hitting on Dean would be the problem here, not young hunters fawning on him like he was Chuck himself. 

Cas’ words left an impression on the bartender and he sized Cas up as he spoke now, finally noting the man in front of him might be as dangerous as those sitting at the table. “Really? You must know em pretty well then…”

Castiel thought to himself how this was a vast understatement. He'd had his hands on every naked inch of Dean Winchester that there was, physically and otherwise. He’d touched his red, ragged soul in Hell and rebuilt him from nothing. He’d laid his tattered soul bare and placed it inside his empty shell and breathed life back into him with his own breath and his Grace. .…and he’d also made sinful, desperate noises escape his perfect lips that he hadn't known Dean could make…and not an hour ago he’d had his own dick buried deep inside of him…No. Focus. He took a swig of his beer to ground himself as he focused on Nelson’s words. Human focus still sometimes evaded him. “Yeah, it’d be safe to say that,” Cas said shortly, hoping the pause in conversation had not been too long while he’d let his thoughts go unimpeded. 

Nelson continued to wheedle information out as he could, not very subtle in his endeavor, but Cas continued to comply...carefully. “People say they’re the best hunters alive.”

“I’d agree. They’ve gone up against the worst of the worst.” Cas added with a sliver of pride outshining the bitter feelings from moments ago. 

“How’d you end up with them? I’m sorry…I’m so rude. My name’s Nelson. I retired a few years ago from hunting.” he extended his hand and Cas shook it as he answered, getting a feel for Nelson’s warmth and friendliness in the shaking of his hand.

“Casey, Casey Falls. Most people call me Cas though…Anyway, my work and their work just happened to collide. I wasn’t really happy with my job, so I ended up quitting and teaming up with them off and on. Nothing too interesting.” Cas tried to downplay his role…no need to draw attention when no one seemed to know he'd existed at all...and there went that small bubble of resentment again. 

Nelson grimaced and whispered quietly as he leaned over. “Heads up buddy. Loopy Lizzie is incoming.”

“Who?” Cas said as he tilted his head in confusion. 

“Hi!” came a perky voice that did not belong in this setting. Cas turned and found a woman staring at him with eager, brown eyes. She had straight auburn hair that danced along the lines of brown more than red. It was pulled up in a low ponytail and she had wirerimmed glasses framing her wide eyes. She had numerous necklaces on, one overlapping another with beads, stones, and chains intermingling. Her outfit was nothing as elaborate as her necklace situation. She had layered a purple hoodie over a basic v neck tee in maroon and dark blue jeans. The outfit actually looked functional and comfortable from the glance Cas gave them. He only had a moment to process before she was all but shoving her hand in his face to shake it. “I’m Liz. Well, my name’s actually Elizabeth but everyone calls me Liz or Lizzie.”

Castiel was a bit taken aback at her forwardness, but he took her hand, pushing it back toward her as he shook it. “Casey…but everyone calls me Cas.”

“Nice to meet you Cas. So, look…this is gonna sound craaaazy,” she took her finger and made loops next to her ear as she spoke. “Your aura is crazy weird. I saw all the hullaballoo over your friends over there and I was like, huh, that’s cool but then your aura was like all kinds of crazy and I thought, that’s the guy to talk to!” Cas’ forehead wrinkled and his eyes narrowed in confusion. 

“I’m not the interesting one I assure you.” Cas said as he caught Dean watching him from the corner of his eye, his green eyes studying him in a way that made him feel very exposed. 

Liz smiled a friendly smile, flashing all her teeth. “Auras don’t lie. You’re all violet and lavenders but with flashes of all the colors. You have an old soul, but I’m sure you’ve heard that before.” Cas about spit his beer out as she said the last and he choked a moment before recovering. Liz put her hand on his shoulder in concern as he choked before he waved her hand away. 

Liz sat down next to him uninvited and flagged down Nelson, who brought her what appeared to be a regular glass of water. “Hunters don’t typically believe in all the aura stuff, but it actually can be really helpful when you need to tell the bad guys from the good guys, you know?”

Cas took another sip and turned his chair to attempt to be able to see the table he’d left as he spoke. His interest was only perfunctory but he attempted to be polite. “How’d you learn to read auras?” 

Lizzie’s eyebrows raised in excitement. “You actually believe in them? You’d be the first hunter I’ve met that does.”

Cas shrugged and smiled softly, turning his attention back to her. “I believe in a lot of things you can’t always see.”

Lizzie nodded her head. “I mean, hunters are open to a lot of things, but you start talking auras and stuff and suddenly you’re crazy. But hunting monsters is totally normal…” Cas laughed at her grumbling rant and he felt Dean’s eyes on him again. 

“So, what makes you so purple, Cas?” Lizzie said with a conspiratorial eyebrow wiggle. 

Cas made an apologetic smile now, rolling his beer bottle on its edge. “Well...I said I believed in auras, not that it was something I’d studied.”

Lizzie seemed to deflate a little at that. “Oh, well, purples are all mysterious. Different shades mean different things of course. It’s not cut and dry but you…I see a lot of spirituality…You don’t see that a lot in hunters. Unending devotion to your cause. It really speaks a lot about your soul. It’s evolving, growing, enlightened. Your even more open to sending and receiving spiritual messages. Your empathetic and kind. Caring and nurturing, and probably a very giving and sensitive lover.” She said all of this deadpan, eager but analytical but Cas’ face turned flushed as Dean picked that moment to come up and slap a hand hard on his shoulder, his fingers digging just a little too hard into his shoulder before his hand slid minutely down his bicep, his touch softening. 

“Sorry, buddy….” Dean said with a forced smile, and a looking in his eyes Cas didn’t understand. “I just needed another beer and thought I’d check on my pal. Who’s your new friend whose discussing your sex life so openly…in the middle of a bar?” Cas cocked his head at Dean’s tone, confused at his mood.

Lizzie’s eyes grew wide and she smiled nervously. “I’m Lizzie. I mean, my name’s Elizabeth but everyone calls me Lizzie or Liz. You’re Dean Winchester, right? You’re all they’re talking about in here now.” She stuck a hand out similarly to how she’d done Cas earlier. Dean shook it but he was tense, and it was uncomfortably obvious. 

“That’s me...Just loving all the attention,” Dean grumbled. He turned to Cas with a raised eyebrow as he glanced to Lizzie. “You know, the table’s cleared out a little if you want to come back and join us?” 

Lizzie shrugged and shook her head at Dean’s request, looking at Cas with considerable interest still. “No thanks. We’re just talking about Auras.”

Dean huffed in exasperation and gave Cas a puzzled look of his own. “Excuse me? I was actually talking to my friend Cas…”

Lizzie’s face flushed softly in embarrassment and she visibly cringed at her own awkwardness. “Oh. Sorry! I’m not very good with the whole social cues thing. I’ll just talk, talk, talk you know? I mean, that’s why my sister is the only one who will hunt with me and even then, she gets annoyed with me and leaves sometimes. Siblings, right?” She seemed to not breath as she spoke, her thoughts a run on sentence.

Dean gave Cas a confused look over her shoulder and he shrugged before his mouth tugged up in a friendly smile. “Speaking of siblings, you should go talk to Dean’s brother Sam. He’s a big reader. I’m sure he’s probably done some reading on auras. He enjoys research.”

Lizzie looked over to the table, looking between Mary, Jack, and Sam. She stopped and tilted her head as she looked at Sam. “Hmm. He has a pretty complicated aura as well.. I doubt he’s a believer though…”

Cas smiled more broadly as Dean lingered near his shoulder. “You’d be surprised what the group of us believe in compared to other hunters. Eventually you see enough, you just have to be open to believing anything is possible, and some things you must take on faith.”

Dean shrugged, unable to argue his point but quirking his mouth at Cas’ talk of faith. “He’s right in that regard. After all we’ve seen, we have to be open to what’s possible.”

Lizzie’s eyes lit in excitement at their acceptance and continued her thoughts. “Like Angels! I mean before they fell, I don’t think many hunters thought they were anything more than old stories, But we know Angels are real now. Truly confirmed. Did you guys come across any when they fell? I didn’t get so lucky…” Lizzie murmured as she all but pouted, her run on thoughts a distressing muddle to the two men standing beside her.

Cas looked to Dean as he spun his beer bottle nervously on the counter again, trying to control his face and hoping he was succeeding. “I came across a few.”

Dean’s mouth quirked in almost a grimace as he nodded, trying to move the subject along, panicking internally as he looked at his ex-Angel. “Yeah, we ran into a few…Anyway…” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously before running his palm along his lightly stubbled chin. “My family…”

Lizzie continued, eager at their admittance. “My sister is obsessed with Angels. Grace. Enochian. All that. She studies it. It’s not really my thing but I try to be supportive, because it can be a very interesting subject. You know, the different types of Angels, their weapons, their use of human vessels…Did you know Angels can only take a vessel after they have been given explicit permission? Polar opposite of demons. I find that really interesting…” 

Cas’ eyes widened, and he swallowed hard. He gave Dean a warning glance and Dean shook his head. “Yeah, yeah we did know that. Lizzie, I’m just gonna steal Cas away for a minute. Jack needed to ask him something…” Dean said with a jerk of his head toward their table. Cas darted away from the bar faster than Dean thought a human could and he followed, trying to smile and act nonchalant even as his heart all but pounded out of his chest. Instead of going to the table, Cas ducked out the back door and Dean followed, looking behind him as he went. No one seemed to be paying them any attention at the moment, which as a relief from the past few minutes.

Cas was pacing in the dark, the white of his undershirt the only thing visible except when he passed under the high window. The yellow light would flash on his features like a sunbeam until Dean put a hand on his arm to stop him and he stilled under his gentle touch. “You would find the one damn person in the whole building who knows enough about Angels to potentially give us problems…” Dean growled out in the dark as he looked around him nervously. 

“It’s not my fault. She liked my aura,” Cas said with a shrug as Dean glared at him with jealousy now prevalent in his eyes. 

Dean frowned now, his eyes narrowing in the darkness. “Well quit flashing your aura around and maybe the ladies would leave you alone.”

“Oh please, Dean. One, it was one lady. Two, I can no more control my aura than you can control the fact that you are an insensitive jerk,” Cas said with venom in his voice as he felt defensive. “And I have zero interest in her obviously. I was trying to be friendly, old buddy…” He drolled out, frustration at their situation dripping from his tone. 

“I’m the jerk? You stormed off as soon as the kiddie table showed up,” Dean said with a forceful whisper that was unnecessary as their voices were all but drowned out by the noise within. 

Cas jutted his chin up arrogantly, his eyes locking with Dean's. “Well, I’d hate to block the spotlight from the famous Dean “I stopped the Apocalypse alone” Winchester. Why don’t you just go find you one of the female hunters too? You wouldn’t have to worry about perceptions then.” His eyes dropped down, studying Dean's mouth instead of his eyes now, unable to maintain eye contact.

Dean stopped, his face hard and his mouth opened and closed once without a word before he put a hand on each of Cas’ shoulders. “I don’t want any of them.” He shook his head as he forced eye contact with Cas. Cas looked down at the ground and kicked the dirt with the toe of his shoe, refusing to lock eyes with him. “Cas…come on. What’s actually wrong?” Castiel sighed and looked at him, shaking his head softly. “You’re jealous, aren’t you? You’ve never had to be before because no one at home wants to talk to me anymore and we don’t go out much,” Dean started laughing and Cas glared like the avenging Angel he’d once been. “You’re jealous and YOU’RE the one flirting with a pretty girl right in front of me.”

“I was not flirting….I don’t think I was…If so it wasn’t intentional,” Cas said as his forehead creased and his mouth turned into a frown as he questioned his interaction with Lizzie.

“Okay, okay, whatever you say,” Dean leaned over and stole a kiss, catching Cas off guard. “Stop being so grumpy. I’d much rather be back at the hotel right now…” He wiggled his eyebrows and Cas smirked despite himself. 

“Instead of around a room full of hunters who hang on your every word?” His voice was soft and unsure, something Dean was not used to from him, especially twice in one night. This was harder on Cas than he'd thought it would be.

“Absolutely. It's no contest,” Dean said as he took a step closer to him, his voice ringing with truth. 

“Even though there are many nice, soft, sweet smelling ladies inside that would love for you to woo them?” Cas said as his eyes were full of insecurity. Dean almost gasped at the sight, wishing he could see himself as Dean did. 

“You’re very nice when you aren’t being a jealous asshole,” Dean murmured in his ear, making him shudder as his hand snaked under his jacket. “You are soft in all the places that matter,” He pushed them closer to the back wall as he spoke now, making Cas walk backwards. “And you smell exactly like the cologne I bought you last week.” Dean kissed Cas’ neck and attempted to press him against the dark building. “I am not at all interested in anyone else in there.” Cas dodged his attempt and held his hand a moment before letting it go. 

“No repeats of earlier, especially not in the back of a bar full of hunters when I’m just your buddy…Think of the scandal,” Cas said with an attempt at humor. He said the next words with scandal in his tone, but his lip curved ever so slightly in humor. “Ladies Man Dean Winchester caught dry humping his hunting buddy behind Nelson’s Bar…”

“Tease,” Dean murmured as he straightened his shirt and hair and adjusted himself in his pants as casually as he could manage. 

“I would never!” Cas scoffed as he made sure he was neat and headed back in, Dean at his back. 

“Liar,” Dean whispered softly in his ear as they opened the door and were again assaulted by the noise. They hugged the wall to get to their table and there smiling at them was a familiar face. 

“Lizzie…” Cas said unexcitedly as he sat next to Mary. 

She smiled warmly at their return, her demeanor inviting and friendly. “Hey! So, I decided to take you up on your offer to meet the rest of your group. You guys are just so cool with your whole extended family hunting together.”

“Oh, it’s a laugh a minute…” Dean murmured as he sat down on the other side of the table from Cas in the only empty seat, wetting his lips mindlessly as Cas grazed him with his eyes. “Anyway,” Dean tore his eyes from Cas in what he hoped was subtle but from the foot he felt stomp on him from Sam…it wasn’t. 

“Lizzie was telling us about herself and her sister, while you and Cas were outside having a chat…” Sam said deadpan, his eyebrow raised in lieu of his typical eyeroll. 

“Oh yeah? Sorry we interrupted! Please continue,” Dean leaned his head on his hands and let Lizzie carry the conversation while he skimmed the rest of the crowd. There were other female hunters but most looked like they’d eat his brother alive…even though he’d probably die a happy man at least. Dean let his mind wander as Lizzie, Sam, and Mary carried the conversation and he couldn’t help but look around the room curiously. Many of the hunters were loud, obnoxious, braggadocios assholes. He saw them swapping stories, knocking over chairs, and swooning and preening over the opposite sex like that episode of Discover Channel Cas made him watch on bird mating rituals. However, he could see with his new eyes, eyes Cas had given him, and he saw several people he suspected might be “hunting buddies” themselves…though they too still looked slightly unsure in the environment of Nelson’s Bar. However, nothing and no one drew his eye like the dark haired, sky eyed man sitting across from him. Yep. Definitely whipped. 

Lizzie was fine enough company, leading the conversation and Dean and Cas exchanged smiles as Sam seemed engrossed in her stories about auras, chakras, and lore. So much lore. Dean began to relax and was able to eventually fenagle the seating arrangement so that he was next to Cas, after sending Sam and Mary both for beer rounds a few times. He’d smiled charmingly at his brother after the last time he’d left and Dean had swiped his seat next to Cas, making his Angel squeeze his thigh under the table to stifle a laugh. Dean did find it odd that Lizzie brought up her sister so much, but that she never appeared. When he brought it up, she waved her hand dismissively and laughed, insisting her sister wasn’t much for hunter gatherings. He understood that…the beer was beginning to leave a fuzzy feeling in his mouth and the constant noise was making his head throb. He didn’t feel much for hunter gatherings either at the moment. He really just wanted to grab a pizza and some sodas and go back to the hotel room and crash with Cas and watch garbage tv, but they were on a mission. A mission that seemed to be going well by the way Sam was laughing. Dean relaxed eventually, leaning back in the chair, and relegating most of his attention to Cas now that it seemed natural to do so. 

As the evening wore on, many of the hunters started pairing off, as anyone in any kind of bar tended to do in these situations. Their group had mostly avoided the hormone driven hour, but their luck finally ran out when a lady hunter a couple of hard years older than them slid into a vacant chair at the recently empty table beside them, her blonde hair pulled up in a strategic bun at the base of her skull. She straddled the chair backwards, her tank top flashing the typical scars of a hunter and impressive muscles that Dean thought might give Cas a run for his money even now. She pulled her chair up between Dean and Cas, who gave her twin raised eyebrows as they glanced at the rest of the group, who managed to all go blind and give their attention to Lizzie. No help at all. The assholes.

“Hey there boys. I’ve been watching you two all night. Couldn’t find it in me to look away as a matter of fact. Finest specimens in the house tonight I’d say.” She bit her lip as she looked at the two of them, even being bold enough to reach out and run a hand on Dean’s jean clad leg. Dean stole a glance to Cas, who had one hand in a fist on the table, but his face remained relaxed except for a twinkle in his eye Dean knew well. 

“Sorry…what’s your name?” Dean attempted to gently brush her hand away, but she instead doubled down and ran the other hand on Cas’ leg while clamping her hand a bit tighter on his thigh. 

She smiled, mistaking his question for genuine interest in her flirtations. “Mindy, and don’t worry. I’m not looking for love, baby. I’m just looking for a couple of good hours and you two look like you could give it to me.”

“I’m flattered, but no thank you,” Cas said kindly but firmly as he took her hand off his leg without timidness. “I’ve already got plans for this evening and I think they’d be rather upset with me if I took you up on your very generous offer…though I hear Dean there is good for more than a couple of good hours if you can talk him into it,” Cas smirked before taking another swig of his beer and grinning only for Dean to see. 

“Well then, he’s out. You in, green eyes?” Cas wiggled his eyebrows behind him, and Dean fought a glare, feeling the payback from his own earlier jealousy. 

“Uhh,” Dean’s mind panicked as he felt her sliding her hand higher up his leg and right before she got to his crotch, his phone rang. He stood up abruptly and snatched it out of his pocket, his own chair falling over in his haste to embrace the escape. Cas’ number was on the screen, but said person sat in the chair listening to Lizzie and the others talk like nothing out of the ordinary was happening, his back to him but his hands obscured in his lap. “Sorry, gotta take this…” Dean mumbled before feigning a conversation with an empty phone line and hanging up. “Sorry Mindy but I gotta run. Cas, gonna need you for this one.” He pointed to his phone and Cas sat his bottle heavily onto the table. 

“If I have to,” Cas sighed heavily, long suffering in his tone as he stood and stretched by putting his palms to the small of his back. 

“Your date’ll be disappointed but duty calls,” Dean added with an apologetic tone as he threw a tip down on the table. Dean signaled to Sam and the others they were heading out and they were waved away, watching Mindy size up Jack and Sam but thinking better of it before she huffed and left. They stumbled out the door, through the thinning crowd until they got to the Impala. The alcohol had made them both more relaxed as the night had gone on and they were both giggling stupidly as they slid into the front seat. 

“Throw me to the wolves much?” Dean said with a husky laugh as he leaned his head against the headrest and turned to look at Castiel. 

“She would have devoured you whole,” Cas said with a wicked grin. “But I cannot deny she has excellent taste.” He slid his hand to Dean’s thigh, where Mindy had been gripping him moments before. 

“I wonder what she would have done if I told her I was strictly into dick these days…” Dean said with a breathy laugh as Cas squeezed his thigh possessively.

“You’d have broken that poor woman’s heart,” Cas said with a lopsided grin as he leaned over and quickly kissed Dean’s Adam’s apple. 

“Doubly so if I told her it was your dick…I was strictly into…” Dean breathed out as Cas slid his hand under his shirt. 

“I’d like to take you right here, in this dirty parking lot…but I’m afraid hunting buddies don’t do that…” Cas said with a soft sigh as he eased himself back over to his seat and looked around at the mostly empty lot. “But if you pick up a pizza and get us back to that disgusting hotel room in one piece, you might coerce a tipsy blowjob out of me before I eat and fall asleep.”

“Aww, Cas, you sweet talker you,” Dean threw him a wink before they peeled out of the parking lot. “How could I turn down such a romantic offer?”  
\-------------------------  
“So where were Dean and Casey going to in such a hurry?” Lizzie said as she sipped on her water after their hasty exit. 

“Probably their hotel room,” Jack said without thinking before Sam shot him a look and he added, “Their separate hotel rooms. To sleep. Alone. Which they do.”

Lizzie raised an eyebrow at Jack’s sudden discomfort, but Mary smiled softly and rolled her eyes. “They probably got wind of a vamp nest to clear out they didn’t want to share with the group. They’ve got each other’s backs. We’re not worried about them. Especially when they’re together.”

Lizzie nodded her head but something in Mary's words confused her. She continued on though. “Most hunters stick to family groups or hunt alone. Y'all are already a pretty big family group as far as hunters go, plus Casey there. Do you all hunt and live together? Me and my sister hunt together but she doesn’t much like hunting with others, and sometimes she would rather go off on her own.”

Mary got dodgy at Lizzie’s seemingly innocent questions as she crossed her arms and gave her a steady smile. “We hunt together when we need to. I travel more than the boys do. I’ve got a…friend…who I hunt with when my family isn’t free. I think though…that I need to get my young cousin here back to the hotel. Sam, you want to come with since Dean and Cas took the car? Or Lizzie might could give you a ride if you want to stay a bit longer…” 

Sam gave Mary an appraising, suspicious look at her suggestion, but Lizzie just smiled. “I’ve got nowhere to be, and I’m sober as a saint so if Sam wants to stay a bit longer, I’d be glad to give him a ride back.”

‘Sam?” Mary looked to him and he shrugged. 

“I’ll let Lizzie drop me off if she’s sure. I’ll text when I’m back in my room.” Lizzie smiled widely at Sam’s staying and Mary gave a half smile of her own. 

“Gotcha, come on Jack.” Mary stood over Jack who looked to Sam. 

“Oh, I could stay too if…” Jack trailed off as Mary gently nudged him on the back.

“Nope. Not gonna happen. Everybody’s pretty wasted, and Cas wouldn’t approve.” The words were out before she could think about them. 

“I thought Jack was your cousin. Not Cas’?” Lizzie cocked her head to the side in confusion.

Mary’s eyes widened only a moment, realizing what she had said but covering quickly, tucking a strand of her blonde hair behind her ears. “Oh, yeah, but he’s super protective, Kind of like a father to him. Right, Jack?”

“Very much so. Goodnight Lizzie,” Jack said with am awkward smile as he held his hand up in a wave. 

“Night guys. Sam, don’t forget to check in.” Mary all but pushed Jack out the door and left Sam and Lizzie alone to talk.


	4. Pyres, Palms, and Prying Eyes

The next day was Greg Keely’s funeral, which was a significantly more somber event, and a stark contrast to the events of the night before. Many of the younger crowd seemed to have cleared out before the sun rose, leaving the old guard to build the funeral pyre in the far backwoods behind Nelson’s bar. Greg's closest friends quietly lit the pyre and they all watched silently as it slowly climbed up the dry wood to the body waiting above. As it licked at the white sheet wrapped figure, Cas quickly reached for Dean’s hand. They stood shoulder to shoulder, their coats brushing against one another already, and considering the circumstances, no one was apt to notice their hands clasped tightly between them…nor did either of them particularly care in the moment. They both felt the weight of the event and the heaviness in the air that could not be alone attributed to the wood smoke lingering around their faces. 

Dean stole a glance to Cas, his mind forcing him to relive the last time he'd been forced to build and light a similar pyre…Cas' pyre. He unwillingly and vividly remembered the sun rising as he carried Cas’ limp body into the house, bridal style, and laying his dead weight onto the cleared off dining table. Even with Cas' warm hand clasped in his own in the here and now, he could still feel the coldness of Cas’ skin against his hands as he wrapped him and dressed his body…and he remembered not wanting Sam’s help to hoist him onto the pyre but conceding because it was all but impossible alone. No one, not even Cas, knew that he’d left one shaky kiss to his knuckles, tears sliding down his cheeks and leaving wet spots on Cas’ sleeve before he’d been able to finally wrap him up that day. He’d been full of regret then for words left unsaid…and he felt more than lucky to have been given this second chance now. The luckiness he felt should have felt out of place in the setting they were in, but he couldn't stifle his gratefulness even as he watched the hunter's body burn, darkening the sky in an ominous dark cloud. Mary’s face was just as somber, perhaps remembering how many hunters she led to a pyre of their own against her will. Jack, one of the youngest faces in the crowd today, stood soberly, perhaps remembering watching his first father figure burn before he’d ever met him in his first days of life, he and Dean's shared trauma. Lizzie stood with them, as her sister had still not appeared to join her for this event. She was rightfully solemn, her face reflecting on her own inner pain and memories alone as everyone around her did the same.

After the event was over, many were mingling at their cars in the parking lot. Cas and Dean stood leaning against the hood of the Impala, talking softly and leaning toward one another as a soft breeze picked up. Sam stood near Lizzie at her car a few spots down as others began loading up. The dull roar of cars cranking and groups talking softly was the background music of the moment. 

Lizzie's smile was genuine and friendly as she spoke. “I had a lot of fun swapping lore and stories with you last night, Sam. So many of these hunters don’t see the beauty in the stories and legends, and they think I’m nuts for my interests. It's refreshing to have someone appreciate them. If the other hunters knew I even dabbled in…” She lowered her voice and leaned in, “magic…they’d probably try to hunt me too.” She studied Sam’s face cautiously as if trying to gauge his reaction as she spoke. Her face was turned up toward Sam's but behind the caution was a glint of defiance, like she was prepared for his disapproval already. 

Sam smiled conspiritually and leaned in, looking over his shoulder and only speaking after feeling assured of no eavesdroppers. “Sometimes it’s necessary, you know. We’ve had to perform a few spells and magic here and there. Me mainly. Dean's typically more comfortable being the weapons guy and Cas…well, he’s open minded but they’ve both had a few run ins with bad witches, so they aren’t as comfortable with the idea.” 

Lizzie smiled back, her nerves dissipating at Sam's reassurance as she rested her hip gingerly on her red sedan. “So, you don’t think I’m just a freak?”

“I’ve got way worse things I could share. I’ve got no room to judge, Lizzie,” Sam said with a soft, friendly smile as he brushed a stray strand of her hair off her cheek before pulling his hand back nervously and shoving them in his pockets. 

She took a deep breath and sighed, disappointed as she glanced at the time on her phone. “I guess I need to go. My sister likes me to check in pretty regularly when I'm around other hunters. I tried to get her to come but she wasn’t “in the mood”,” Lizzie said with air quotes and an eye roll. “She’s not very fun to hunt with sometimes. We aren’t even hitting the road for a day or two because she’s too busy with her studies, but if you guys ever need a hand and I’m in the area…” She looked between her phone and Sam expectantly.

Sam blinked quickly and fumbled for his own phone, almost dropping it on the pavement as he did so. “Yeah, totally. Let me give you my number…If you ever need any help, just give us…me, give me a call. Or if you just want to go hang out and swap stories…I’d love to, you know, get to know you better. I mean, if you want.” He smiled warmly, his forehead scrunching as he did. His nerves were apparent on his face but he was eager to show her his interest in continuing their conversations. 

“I’d like that too, Sam, a lot,” Lizzie said with a soft smile as she tucked her hair behind her ears shyly. “It was really nice to meet you and your family.”

“You too…Uh, I'll see you around...” Sam said, hesitating a moment awkwardly before clearing his throat and walking away.

“We ready to hit the road?” Dean said with a look between Sam and Lizzie as his brother walked over. “We can wait you know…another night. Or two.”

He playfully elbowed Cas, who blinked in surprise before nodding his head in agreement.

Suddenly Sam’s eyes narrowed suspiciously, and his mouth drew into a tight line. “Wait…are you two TRYING to get me to hook up with Lizzie?” He said this softly, a venomous whisper, as she was still loading up into her vehicle nearby, lingering as she stole glances to Sam and his family. 

Dean had the grace to look a bit like he'd been caught red handed, but he quickly played it off with a toothy grin. “Hook up? No. Find a wonderful, lasting relationship, maybe…” He said with a wink as he looked to Cas for backup, but when Cas simply shrugged in response, Dean huffed in pretended annoyance at him.

“You two, Christ…" Sam grumbled, making an attempt at feigning disbelief after the shock of his brother's plan set in. However, his face soon turned contemplative. "But…if we don’t have any plans, are you two actually not opposed to hanging out for another night?” Sam hedged carefully, gauging their reaction and stealing a glance back to Lizzie to make sure she had not driven off yet.

Dean and Cas smiled together now. “Only if we change to a better hotel room,” Cas added abruptly, making Sam laugh with feeling and Dean playfully roll his eyes at him again. 

“It's a deal, Cas. No sense in Mom and Jack staying if they don’t want I guess. I’ll talk to them after I talk to Lizzie.” Sam immediately turned on his heel and headed back to Lizzie's car and Dean and Cas watched as she got out and smiled at whatever Sam said.

Dean leaned over to Cas and spoke softly out of the corner of his mouth as they watched Sam and Lizzie together. “Wanna get lunch and make out after we change hotels?”

Cas gave a tooth flashing smile then his face sobered just as quickly. “You’re so romantic, Dean…but…yes. I would absolutely love to take you up on your offer. I don’t much care to be without you after the events of today.”

Dean stole another glance to Sam and Lizzie, who were paying them no mind before lacing his fingers with Cas’ as they leaned against the hood of the Impala. “Me either, sweetheart, and I’m tired of keeping you at arm’s length. I’ve gotten spoiled.”

Cas quirked a doting smile and squeezed Dean's hand with his own. “Well, we’re getting a couple more days of quiet, alone time in a non-disgusting hotel room. You can keep me much closer than arm’s length if you’d like…clothing optional.”

“So spoiled,” Dean said with a happy sigh as he closed his eyes and let the noonday sun warm his face and chase away the chill of his earlier intrusive memories.  
\-------------------------------------  
Sam checked in with them early in the evening, sending a text that he and Lizzie were going to get supper if Cas and Dean wanted to join. Dean groaned aloud as he read the text message. He and Cas were a tangled mass of limbs at this point, their boxers their only clothing as they cuddled. Dean was so the little spoon tonight with Cas' chest a comforting warm. They’d picked up fast food for lunch, checked out of the roach motel and into a hotel a couple of economic classes higher and been huddled under the cover ever since. The funeral had stirred up memories neither had wanted and they’d found their own ways to chase them away, and if those ways included greasy pizza, cuddling, and good sex, there was no one around to judge.

Cas reached over, plucked the phone from his hand, and sighed as he read the text for himself. “We really should join them. If you’re really wanting to see this work, we have to make an effort too. She seems very nice.”

“Fine. I can’t believe you’re making me put on pants,” Dean groaned, a dramatic overacting gesture as he sat up and grabbed them up from the floor. “But if this is a vegetarian or vegan place, I’m out.”

“Fair enough,” Cas said with a grin as he tossed him his shirt from the end of the bed.  
\-------------------------  
“Cas…” Dean groaned in dismay as they pulled up in front of the restaurant they’d been given the address for to meet them. It looked new age and had a salad worked into their actual logo plastered on the front window. He parked the car and got out with a look of trepidation on his face, his nose wrinkled in distaste as Cas joined him.

“I promise a salad won’t kill you, Dean. Come on…” He all but pushed him inside and they found Sam and Lizzie sitting opposite one another at a booth by the front window. Lizzie had Sam’s hand, palm up on the table tracing lines and talking softly to him as they walked up. 

“Hey. Nice...uh...place you picked out for supper,” Dean said with a skeptical look around at the hipster vibe that continued inside, nary a hamburger in sight. 

“They have things other than salad, Dean…I checked before we came here,” Sam said with a laugh at Dean's face as he brought his hand back across to his side of the table. 

When Dean raised his eyebrow, Lizzie shrugged but blushed softly. “I was reading his palm. Another one of those things that’s not very useful for hunting, but a fun way to get to know people.”

‘Okay, I’ll bite,” Dean said as he slid in beside Sam and Cas slid in beside Lizzie. “What’d you actually learn reading him?”

“Well,” Lizzie gestured for Sam’s hand back, which he gave eagerly before he bit his lip and gave Dean a warning glance to not say a word. “Sam has an air elemental hand shape which indicates he is intellectually curious and has good analytical skills. His Mount of Saturn is a bit larger than normal which corresponds to responsibility and courage in pain and adversity…” She looked between the group who all nodded in shared acknowledgement. “And the other mound of interest would be the Mount of Luna. It gives insight into one’s capacity for imagination, intuition, and potential psychic abilities.” She missed Dean and Cas shooting a look to Sam, who shot them another warning gaze. “It also can show a great aptitude for empathy, compassion, and a potential knack for magick.”

“A Sam-witch, huh?” Dean said with a skeptical eyebrow as he propped his head in his hands, ignoring Sam's bitchface at his bad joke. “What about the little lines? Don’t they mean something?”

Lizzie hedged awkwardly at Dean's inquiry. “Uh, well, I already told Sam all of his…but I’d be happy to read one of you. I never did get to tell you about your aura, Dean…if you wanted.”

“I would very much like to hear about Dean’s aura,” Cas spoke up quickly with a twinkle in his eyes as he laced his fingers together and leaned his weight on them. Dean rolled his eyes but shrugged in acceptance, throwing his back into the seat of the booth and crossing his arms over his chest, feigning disinterest.

“Dean’s aura is fairly unique to hunters in my experience. Yours all are to be honest. That’s why I wanted to talk to all of you. Auras of course change over time, and aren’t just one thing but Dean has gold, which indicates divine protection and when one has gold they are being guided to their highest good. You’re very protected by divine energy.” Cas’ eyes sparked with an energy of his own as she spoke, but she missed the self-satisfied smile he wore. “You have pastels mixed in as well, which typically indicates sensitivity and a need for peace. Not something I see much in hunters.” She looked at him curiously, biting back questions of her own about her reading.

Sam laughed out loud, abruptly making Dean and Cas look to him in unison. “Dean’s about as sensitive as a sack of bricks.”

“I disagree,” Cas snapped back abruptly, his tone sharp enough to make Sam snap his mouth shut apologetically and Lizzie look between them again, puzzled. 

Lizzie awkwardly began again, looking between the three of them with growing confusion and intrigue. “Umm, there’s also some emerald green, which also means you are a love-centered person.” Lizzie looked even puzzled by the end and Dean coughed uncomfortably as Cas looked at him across the table. 

“Okay, well, let’s get some food,” Dean shuffled uncomfortably under Lizzie’s appraising gaze and they bantered amongst themselves as Dean scanned the menu with a skeptical eye. After the food was ordered and they were waiting, Dean nudged the conversation back to their earlier topic. 

“Okay, not to sound like we’re using you for parlor tricks here, but if you want to read a palm, do Cas’.” Cas squinted at Dean in a curious way, but Lizzie perked up and smiled toothily, eagerness in her expression. 

“Sure, if you’re willing?” Lizzie held her hand out and Cas sighed softly and complied, wondering if the lines in his hand would tell his story...or Jimmy Novak's. he buried the nervousness down in the face of Dean's enthusiasm. Lizzie dove in quickly as she studied him. “I usually start with the heart line. The location of yours indicates you are satisfied with your current romantic situation; however it stands. It’s depth and shape also indicate you can be jealous and also have a tendency to disregard authority.” Dean choked on his soda and Cas shot him a look that Lizzie again missed as she studied his hand more. Dean shrugged in a silent apology as he wiped the soda from his chin with the back of his hand. “Your life line starts out shallow, which typically indicates a life controlled by others but it deepens here, which means that aspect of your life is in the past. However, It suddenly forks dramatically here which shows a huge life change occurred, perhaps a change in careers or your life path. Does that make sense to you in some way?”

She had her finger on the line she spoke of, as if holding her place in a book.

Cas raised an eyebrow and gave her a sly half smile as he nodded. “It very much aligns with my life events, yes. Perhaps it’s best we do not delve further though…”

Lizzie kept a strong grip on his hand and did not relent as he gently tugged. “Hold on…You also have a somewhat rare line called the dedication line. It stops at the heart line, which shows the change that occurred in your life was more aligned to your desires. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that line in anywhere other than books. So that change was a very dramatic one, and personal as well, huh?”

Cas slid his hand back to his lap, smiling but slight discomfort was behind his eyes now, her reading hitting closer to him than he would have guessed it could. Dean studied him from across the table, a twinkle in his eye with unreadable feeling. ”You could say that.”

Lizzie sighed, not seeing Dean's face and only focusing on Cas' discomfort and misinterpreting it as directed at herself. “I’m sorry. I always seem to freak people out. Delaney says I always say too much and don't know when to shut up.”

Cas tried to smile disarmingly as Lizzie took a dejected sip of her soda, her hair loosely hanging in front her face as a shield. “No, it’s okay. I just have some very private matters about my past I like to keep that way, at least until I know someone better, and you seem to do very well at hitting things very much on the nose. That is a gift for sure.”

She tucked her hair behind her ears, dethawing from her earlier withdrawal. “A gift that makes people not want to talk to me…It’s tough to make friends when you spook people like I just did with you or your sister runs them off…” Lizzie drawled out. 

“Are we ever going to meet this elusive sister of yours? Even though you’re more than safe with the three of us, I wonder how she’d feel about it if she’s as protective as you say…” Dean added thoughtfully. He knew how he'd feel if he found out Sam was hanging out with three hunters they didn't know, alone and with no back up. 

“Oh, I told her I was coming here. I do try to check in and invite her but she’s just in one of her moods. She’s working on something and doesn’t want to be interrupted. Or so she says. She gets like this sometimes.” Lizzie stabbed at the ice in her glass as she spoke. “It gets lonely for sure.”

As they continued talking softly to one another, none of them felt the eyes on them from outside, concealed in the darkened parking lot. Whispered, ancient magic revealed to those same eyes that all three of the men at the table glowed with an inner light…traces of retained Grace. Very interesting…and very useful to their purposes indeed. Perhaps their time had not been completely wasted coming here after all.


End file.
